Fantasy and Photos
by azurefang
Summary: Elena has a fantasy based on her inability to choose either Stefan or Damon.This leads to Bonnie taking pictures of her and the brothers.
1. Chapter 1

FANTASY AND PHOTOS

Chapters 1 to 6

Disclaimer: The Vampire Diaries does not belong to me.

A/N Wow! I just realized I published Chapter 2 before I put on Chapter One. So here are Chapter 1 _and_ Chapter 2! ALSO, I messed up Chapter 6. So now this is one long story with Chapter 6 near the end.

Elena fantasizes a solution because she can't make up her mind whether to choose Stefan or Damon. This story takes place after her return from Denver with Damon. Stelena, Bonnie, Damon.

Chapter 1

"Fantasy"

When Elena wanted to discuss something personal, she had to decide whom she would talk to. In this case Elena confided in Bonnie; she didn't tell anyone else, including Caroline. The blonde girl knew most of Elena's secrets, but Elena was afraid Caroline would make fun of her or blab to someone else.

Bonnie was at the Gilbert house with Elena on this day when she decided to reveal her secret wish.

"I have to tell you of a thought I had while I was flying back from Denver with Damon," Elena said after taking a good swallow of her Coke. She had scooped chocolate ice cream into small bowls for each of them and they now sat at the kitchen table. "You have to promise not to tell anyone, not even Caroline. Okay?"

"Okay. Why can't you tell Caroline?"

"I don't know. You're the one I trust most, Bonnie. You keep secrets the best. Caroline would make fun of me."

"You really have me curious now, you know," Bonnie said, eyeing her friend as she relished a spoonful of ice cream. Mmmm, chocolate!

"I was trying to nap on the plane, but I couldn't. Damon was sitting next to me. Our knees were touching and I was so aware of it. Bonnie, I kissed Damon on the trip. I told you most of what happened in Denver, but not that."

"You definitely didn't tell me that," Bonnie said, raising her eyebrows. "Have you sort of chosen Damon over Stefan? Is that where things stand now?"

"No. Not really. He just got me really turned on and I kissed him. And I mean _really _kissed him! If Jeremy hadn't been there, I don't know how far it would have gone."

"Wow!"

"Then we argued because he said I was teasing him cruelly. He said I was as bad as Katherine. I felt guilty, but I was also mad. At him and at myself. But that isn't the real reason I wanted to confess a secret to you."

"It's something harder to deal with than that?" Bonnie asked, thinking her friend was more confused than she had been before going to Denver. That trip was supposed to help her make up her mind.

"On the way home, on the plane, I wondered what it would be like to marry _both _Stefan and Damon. At the _same time_," Elena confessed, her face turning red.

"Elena! Are you serious?" Bonnie asked, stunned at the idea.

"I'm serious about the idea, but not about doing it. Bonnie, I _really_ love them both."

"Oh, boy."

"Yeah. They are so different, but I love each of them for who they are. Now, I realize that I'm just looking at the positive side of their personalities, and ignoring the negative things, but when I'm not upset about something they've done, I feel a strong love for each of them."

"I guess that's possible, Elena. But you know you can't really _have_ them both without a lot of trouble."

"I know. But I _want_ them both. Why do the laws of nature and the land insist that I can only have one of them? Even if I believed in polygamy, it wouldn't help. I thought that involved a _man_ taking more than one wife."

"Doesn't it? Like those people out in Utah or Arizona or wherever?"

"When I got home, I looked it up on the computer. Like, was there such a thing as a woman taking more than one husband? Was there a name for that? What I found was that polygamy included polyandry, which is when a woman takes more than one husband, which is uncommon in the world."

"I would think so," Bonnie agreed. Elena had gone as far as looking it up on her computer? That was serious.

"In my opinion it's uncommon because a man's ego wouldn't want him to share 'his' woman with another man. Yes, I know there are 'open' marriages. But I don't think the man would want his wife expressing _true love_ for the other man. He wouldn't want them sleeping together because of real love."

"I can't see either Damon or Stefan _sharing _you, girl."

"I don't see it either. Anyway, laws in many countries forbid a person from having more than one legal spouse at a time. Bigamy is somewhat common, however. That's when a person, usually a man, secretly has a second spouse hidden from the first one. Perhaps two different sets of children, even. It's still illegal," Elena informed Bonnie, although she knew Bonnie was already aware that there were bigamists.

"If a woman had two husbands, wouldn't one or both of them stray? Cheat on her? I suspect that they would. Especially if she became pregnant," Elena went on.

"Oh, yeah," Bonnie agreed, nodding. In fact, she grinned.

"If she had two husbands, would the stronger find a way to push the other out? Or

if a woman had two husbands, would she really just be a person being _used_ by the two men?" Elena questioned.

"That sounds more likely," Bonnie said. "So, it's very unlikely that Damon and Stefan would agree to be your two lovers or your legal husbands. I can hear them now. They would divide up the days or weeks. You know, like, 'She's yours this week. I'll sleep in my own bed,' Damon could say. No way! He'd want you for his own. Always."

"So would Stefan. He's more moral and wouldn't consent to marrying a woman who already had a husband," Elena said. "Or if he was my first husband, he wouldn't accept his brother as the second. Or would he?"

"Stefan? Uh uh. Not a chance. And what would the wedding look like if you married them both at the same time? Two grooms side by side or one on each side of you? That way, one of them would not be the 'first' husband." Bonnie had to chuckle, envisioning this: Elena in a beautiful gown and the two handsome grooms.

"No, one of them would have to say the vows just before the other, thus making him 'first.' Surely that would be Damon. He's the older and the more dominant. He would smirk at Stefan and make him know that he was the lesser of the two," Elena said, shaking her head, but beginning to see the humor in the situation.

"Of course, Stefan has an advantage," she continued. "He's already slept with me. I'll admit we dated for a while before I felt ready for sex, and he didn't push me. Ever the gentleman. Then we had it a lot. He knew I wasn't a virgin, but he sure taught me things I hadn't known."

"I hate to think of all the stuff he's probably done over the years. Boy, speak of experienced! And you said he never bit you during sex," Bonnie said, although she wondered if that had ever changed. She knew vampires tended to bite during orgasm. Or so she had been told by Caroline.

"No, he never did. I have no idea whether that took a great deal of self-control on his part or if the desire to do it wasn't strong," Elena said, wondering.

"We know Damon bit Caroline back when he was using her," Bonnie said. It was one of several reasons she disliked the undead so much.

"And he bit Andie," Elena nodded.

"It's probably safe to say that if you married Damon, you'd be bitten. A lot."

"You're right."

"You'd be lying there in bed with your two husbands, one biting and one not. Stefan would be bound to not like that," Bonnie said. "Or maybe seeing Damon bite, Stefan would feel the need to do it, too. You'd have a lot of fang marks. It would have to hurt. Maybe you'd even have to have blood transfusions."

"I see your point," Elena said, mentally visualizing the scene. Her imagination also briefly saw what might precede the biting, the three of them in intimacy. A _ménage a trios_. Two mouths touching her. Four hands on her body. Two …

"I think the situation could get tricky," Bonnie said, contemplating a possible scene.

Although she didn't tell Bonnie, Elena knew that the brothers were anatomically identical in the private parts department, or so Stefan had told her. She had seen Damon naked, but not naked while aroused. She had seen him aroused but clothed at the time, so she couldn't say that Stefan was right.

She had loved the intimacy with Stefan. She often wondered about how the intimacy would be with Damon. Stefan could play rough, but he was always considerate of her and of what she was feeling. She hadn't known then that she was playing with fire, that Stefan had a past history of being the "Ripper."

Would Damon be considerate? She suspected he could be really rough. She was uncomfortable with the fact that she was quite curious and that these thoughts often entered her mind, quite detailed thoughts of herself in bed with Damon. She savored another spoonful of chocolate ice cream, caressing the smooth hard surface of the cold spoon with her tongue.

Wouldn't it be nice if she could have them both without the struggle of dominance or jealousy? She could turn to either one for kissing, snuggling and even sex without the other feeling left out and angry. She could have both of them in bed pleasing her at the same time without her feeling like they were using her to please themselves. Or competing to see who could please her the most while they …

"Bonnie to Elena. Hello," Bonnie said when her friend seemed lost in thought.

Elena snapped back to the moment and took the spoon from her mouth.

"I was just thinking. Another problem would be who would be the boss in the marriage? Who would have the final say in an important decision? Not only would this be a question of Damon or Stefan, but it would involve me, of course.

"I mean, this is _my_ fantasy, so I would want to be the head of the family. But of course, the chances that I would have the final say in decisions involving all three of us are slim. Stefan might give in, but Damon probably wouldn't. I'm not a vampire like them. I'm not stronger or more dominant. I'm not older than them. Well, maybe I'm already older than Stefan. In other words, I couldn't force them to do what I wanted."

"You already know Damon pitches a fit if you decide to do something he doesn't agree with or you don't want to do what he wants."

"How true. And can you imagine my saying 'Not tonight.' whenever I felt like it, and they wouldn't be annoyed?"

"Dream on! If they did give in to your wishes when they really didn't want to, then there would be resentment and dissention," Bonnie said, frowning, a little disappointed that she had run out of ice cream.

"Who am I kidding? There would be dissention right from the moment I brought up the idea of having both brothers. It didn't work for Katherine. It wouldn't work for me. Katherine was in the bed of each brother, but not together. She turned them both for her own selfish pleasure and then she basically lost both brothers. I would lose them too."

"Oh, I agree. The idea of happily having both brothers is a losing proposition. Having both of them in one large bed with you in control is pure fiction. It isn't going to happen. The brothers wouldn't allow it."

"I know. But it was fun thinking such a thing would solve my problems," Elena said with a sigh. She swallowed the last spoonful of her ice cream. It was gone, like her fantasy.

She often didn't think of herself as a teenager, but she was. Eighteen. Life had dealt her so many difficulties lately that she felt much older. Sometimes she felt like she couldn't deal with them by herself anymore. Sure, she could discuss problems with those close to her like Bonnie and Caroline, but she wished she had older, wiser people to help her, to give her advice, to support her ideas, and to reassure her when she made a decision. Preferably someone not a vampire.

Alaric Saltzman was the last of the adults to fit that description. The others had died during the last two and a half years. Poor Alaric had been dealt some serious blows which had made him very unreliable. He had been drinking too much for months. Now he was apparently suffering from a split personality caused by the Gilbert ring that he wore. It had gone bad. That made Elena doubly worried. If Alaric's ring was doing bad things to him, might the same happen to Jeremy, who also wore a Gilbert ring?

Aside from the dangerous things that seemed to occur around Elena and Mystic Falls, Elena's real problem was the Salvatore brothers themselves. They were just not in a position to give her the answers she wanted and needed.

In the meantime, she was stuck with indecision and no one to offer her really helpful advice. She suspected that adult advice would entail her finishing high school, going to college and not choosing either Damon or Stefan. Neither one of them. Now, that was depressing.

Chapter 2

"Photos"

"I have an idea," Elena said to Bonnie. There was a grin on her face and a sparkle in her brown eyes. She needed to get away from the depressing idea that she couldn't have both Stefan and Damon, and indeed she might not get either one. She needed something a bit more fun to do. Something uplifting that included the brothers.

"Oh,oh. I see trouble," Bonnie said, raising her eyebrows. "What are you up to?"

"I want to take a picture."

"Ooookay. Of what?"

"Me and Damon and Stefan. The three of us. Together."

"Doing what?" Bonnie asked, her eyes wider.

"Bonnie! You're thinking dirty thoughts!"

"Well, look what we were just talking about. So, what do you have in mind?"

"Just what I said. Me and the two guys together. You can take the picture or two."

"You won't be doing anything risqué?"

"No! Come on, Bonnie. I'm not talking about some pic of us in bed or something. Can you see Stefan agreeing to that?"

"Not with me there, no."

"He's never suggested taking any pictures when we were … you know. And he better not. You know how those things sometimes mysteriously end up on the Internet."

"I don't think Stefan would do that. Damon, maybe."

"Yeah. Damon could be a problem. He'd agree to you taking the photos and then demand a set of copies for himself."

"Would you give him a set?"

"I guess so. If it would get him to be in the pictures."

"Wait a minute. A _set _of pictures? Like how many? I thought you meant a _couple_ of pictures."

"No, we'd have to take several to get a good one or two, I think."

"I think this is turning into a production. And you haven't even spoken to the guys about it. I bet Damon will leer at you and agree to _any_ pictures, while Stefan will say 'no way.'"

"There's only one way to find out. Come on. Let's go over to their place. I guess I better call them first and be sure they're home." Elena phoned Stefan and he told her he was home. So was Damon.

"What's up?" he asked, his tone indicating that he was expecting some bad news.

"Don't worry. It's a fun thing. You'll see," Elena said, using a cheerful voice. She didn't want him pacing the floor and brooding until she and Bonnie got there.

"What are you going to wear?" Bonnie asked, looking at the clothes Elena had on. Her green short shorts were striped and her yellow top with its spaghetti straps had polka dots. She had worn flip flops on her feet. It wasn't an outfit she planned to wear outside her home.

"I'll go change. Something a little sexy, huh?"

"It would certainly convince Damon. I don't know about Stefan."

They went up to Elena's bedroom and went through some of her clothes. Although Bonnie didn't want the photographs to be sexy, she did talk Elena into a couple of flimsy, sexy tops and a pair of nice short shorts.

"Wear that lacy black bra. I'll bet Stefan likes that."

"He does. Or he did the last time we were together that he saw it. Hey! Are you suggesting I show this bra off in the pictures."

"Sure. Why not?" Ideas were popping into Bonnie's head.

"Bonnie! You are really getting into this. Next thing I know, you'll have us in bedroom scenes."

"Maybe. How about this red teddy? I didn't even know you had this." Bonnie felt some excitement because in the past she had been very into photography.

"I thought Stefan would like it."

"Did he?"

"He did, indeed. I'm glad he's not one of those guys that rips clothes off of a woman."

"He isn't? Not even when he's … uh… excited?"

"No. He liked to undress me. But he can do it really quickly if he's excited. Without ripping stuff. Call him Mr. Nimble Fingers."

They both laughed over this. Finally, they had what they wanted, some of it on Elena's body and some in a bag. They decided to use Bonnie's camera phone, which took good pictures. Off to the Salvatore house they went.

On the drive over, Elena said, "Bonnie, I'm trusting you not to tell the guys about my fantasy."

"I won't breathe a word about it. Promise."

At the house, Stefan let them in and they went into the study where Damon was reading a book and sipping bourbon. It was mid afternoon and he tended to start early.

"So, what's up?" Damon asked, eyeing what Elena was wearing with approval.

"A photo shoot," Elena said, grinning.

"A what?" Stefan asked, frowning, but his eyes reflected curiousity.

"We are going to have fun taking pictures. I need to lift my spirits," Elena explained. "I was feeling down and I thought about coming over here and having Bonnie take pictures of me and the two guys who are so much on my mind."

"Which means you still can't choose," Damon observed.

"Let's not deal with that right now," Elena said. "Come on. Humor me. I want to do this."

"You have several pictures of you and me," Stefan said, and this was true, since they had taken pictures on his cell phone at her house and at the lake cottage.

"These will be better. Well … different."

"Really different," Bonnie said. "We brought more interesting things for Elena to wear."

"Oh?" Damon said, eyeing the bag Elena had set on the floor. He got up from the sofa and walked to the bag, picking it up. He reached in and pulled out the red teddy. "My, my. Look what we have here. I want to see you pose in this."

Stefan moved closer and snatched the garment from Damon's hand, almost ripping it's lace.

"Elena, what the hell?" Stefan asked, a disapproving look on his face. He had once slowly removed this piece of apparel from her body.

"It's for fun, Stefan. No one is going to be nude or faking sex or anything," Elena said. "Please play along."

"I don't know what you want to do. Tell us," Stefan insisted.

"Okay. Let's start out with a picture of the three of us. I'll be in the middle and you two will be on either side of me with an arm around me. Okay?"

"I'm sure I can do that," Damon grinned. He reached out, put an arm around her waist and pulled her up against his side.

"Hold on a sec, mister," Elena said. "Stefan, come on. Put your arm around my shoulders. Please."

Stefan seemed to have mixed emotions about this. For one thing, he didn't want to be left out. He didn't want Damon having all the fun. On the other hand, he was in a somber mood. And besides, he didn't want to share Elena with Damon.

"Come on, Stefan," Bonnie said. "You don't want Damon to be a hog, do you?"

"At least you didn't call me a pig, Judgy," Damon said with a smirk. "Get over here, brother. You're being a spoilsport."

Stefan gave in, and with a little grin, put his arm around Elena's shoulders.

She slipped her arms around the young men's waists. To her it felt good as her arms and hands felt their strong bodies. This was good. If only …

"Smile, you guys," Bonnie ordered. She took two pictures. "Okay, each of you kiss her on the cheek." The boys leaned down a bit and did this and she took pictures.

"This is the kind of work I like," Damon said in Elena's ear, although Bonnie and Stefan easily heard him.

"I think we can get a little steamier here," Bonnie said. "But not too much. Okay?

Guys, take off your shirts. Elena, you have that nice black bra on, take off your top."

"The photographer is showing us a totally new side of her personality," Damon commented, leering at Bonnie. "Put a camera in her hands and watch out!" Without hesitation, he removed his shirt.

Elena looked at Stefan. Would he go along with this? She gave him a bit of a seductive smile as she slowly removed her shirt.

He tilted his head, gave her a little smile, unbuttoned his shirt and removed it.

"Elena, we need to get you up on something," Bonnie said. "So the guys don't have to lean down to kiss you."

"How about a couple of thick books?" Damon suggested and he went to the shelves along one wall of the study.

The girls' eyes followed him, admiring his muscled back. As he bent down to look at bigger books on a lower shelf, his low-rise jeans slipped a bit lower. They could see the top of his butt crack.

In a moment he straightened up and returned with two moderately thick tomes, putting them on the floor, one on top of the other.

Elena carefully stepped up on them after kicking off her flat sandals. Perched on the books, she ended up just an inch shorter than the men. She held onto their shoulders for balance as she grinned at them. Bonnie took more pictures. Damon and Stefan each kissed her cheek again. More pictures.

Bonnie looked at what she had on her phone. The last pictures showed the young men's muscled chests and arms, the top of their jeans. They also showed well the tattoo of a rose bloom on Stefan's right shoulder. The pleased expression on Elena's face was obvious. She had her two men where she wanted them, at least for the moment.

A/N I know this is a bit short, but I have more coming. I think I already published the third part in the story "Photos", but I'll run it separately soon. I hope you like this story so far. Sorry about the confusion. Please comment.

CHAPTER 3

"FRUSTRATION"

In Elena's kitchen, they divided the prints into sets, one for Elena, one for Stefan and one for Damon. Bonnie had made only a couple for herself, but, of course, she had all of them. Elena didn't think Stefan would want pictures of Elena in Damon's arms, nor would Damon want the ones of just Elena and Stefan.

"Okay," Bonnie said, "This pile with Damon on top is for him. And this one with Stefan on top is for him."

"I'll be really ticked off at Damon if he shows these around," Elena said.

Jeremy happened to come home and into the room at this time and he spotted the piles of prints. He grabbed one up before Elena could stop him.

"Damn, sis, what have you been up to?" he said, gaping at the pictures with both shock and admiration. He had the set meant for Damon.

"We weren't naked, Jeremy, much as it looks like it!" Elena snapped. "Give me those pictures."

"You look pretty naked to me. Damon's butt is hanging out in this one! How do I know you have anything on under that sheet?" the brother teased, holding the photos out of his sister's reach.

"That's the point. The pictures just tease the imagination," Bonnie said.

"Well, they tease mine. Are you giving these to the guys? I can see Damon drooling over them now."

"Let him drool. Gimme those pictures, Jeremy!" Elena said, grabbing his arm and reaching. However, he was taller than she was and his arm was longer as he held the prints high in the air. Elena tickled his side and down came his arm. She grabbed hold of the pictures and he let her have them.

"I'm just _shocked _that you two would do this," Jeremy teased, grinning. "Bonnie, you amaze me. I'd never guess you'd do this." He had now snatched up her phone that was lying on the table and he found the whole set of pictures. "You never suggested we take any pictures of _us _like this." He still had strong feelings for Bonnie and she knew it.

Bonnie made no effort to get the phone from him. He was much taller and stronger than she was. Let him look, she thought. With his back turned to her, she took the time to look him over, from this dark hair, his nice shoulders, great butt and slender legs. He had hurt her with his attention to ghost Anna, but she longed to be in his arms, in his bed. But she had her pride. Did that make her stronger than Elena, who had just faked being in bed with both Stefan and Damon? Or were they both denying themselves?

"Pics like that take a third person to take them or a camera with a good timer," Bonnie said. "Besides, I didn't want us to be seen like that. Our time together was personal." It was true that she and Jeremy each had photos of each other and Elena had taken some of the two together when they were dating, but none were suggestive like these new ones.

Jeremy looked at her steadily, perhaps trying to figure out if she was sending him a message. She eyed him the same way. Neither of them were sure and neither of them responded with any subtle hints.

Elena noticed the look and she saw them each back off. She loved both these people and she knew that for a while, they had made each other happy. Although Jeremy was two years younger than Bonnie, he was now more mature in his attitude than many boys his age. He had been through almost as much grief as his sister.

Elena felt sorry for the couple who were no longer a couple. The fact that Jeremy had loved both Anna and Bonnie at the same time had doomed that love. Was that what was to happen with her, Stefan and Damon? Was their love doomed?

"I'm going to take these over to the guys," Elena said, gathering up the two sets that were not hers. "Are you coming, Bonnie?"

"No. I've got some shopping to do. I told my father I'd pick up some groceries. I'll talk to you later."

As Jeremy headed for the stairs, Bonnie and Elena went to the front door. In a couple of minutes, Elena was driving to the Salvatore house. When she arrived, she saw that Damon's blue Camero was gone. She realized she should have called ahead since both brothers might be gone. Still, since she had a key, she could leave the pictures for them.

She found the front door unlocked, so she walked in, as she usually did. From the front hall she called, "Stefan, are you here?"

In a moment he came from the direction of the kitchen. His expression showed he was pleased to see her, which was really nice. In fact, he walked right up to her and slipped his arms around her. She welcomed his embrace, letting him draw her close. He leaned down and sought her mouth with his. She was all for his hugging and kissing her. For the first time in a long time, Stefan kissed her with passion and she returned it. His body began to respond as he pressed against her.

Stefan pulled back and looked at her with love. "Damon will be gone for a while. An hour at least. May I lure you to my bedroom, Miss Elena," he said in the old Virginia drawl which he could resurrect when he wanted to.

"Why, yes, I believe you may do so, sir," Elena drawled back. She had a central Virginia accent, of course, but she could deliberately increase it. Was she making a mistake going to Stefan's bedroom? Her heart and her crotch were telling her to join him. Her mind had some doubts. They were halfway up the first flight of stairs when there was a sudden loud thumping sound as well as the splash of water from down the hall.

"What the hell?" Stefan said and he vaulted over the railing and headed toward the sound. Elena followed by hurrying down the stairs, leaving her purse hanging by its strap on the newel post of the railing.

In the laundry room one of the two washers was wobbling and inching away from the wall, spilling water out of its outflow hose. It was obviously on spin cycle and the load was unbalanced. It reached the end of its inflow hoses as the electric cord pulled out of the outlet. The machine stopped its thumping, vibrating and traveling as the spin slowed and ground to a stop.

"Damn!" Stefan said, eyeing the water on the floor. "It must be the gym shoes I put in there. I gotta get this cleaned up before Damon sees it or I'll get a lecture for an hour."

Stefan turned off the water hoses and disconnected them. He and Elena spent some time with towels, mop and bucket sopping up the water from under the other washer and the two dryers. Luckily, Stefan could move the machines easily. They got this done before Damon could return and see it. Stefan spread out the shoes in the washer after returning it to its spot, putting the drain hose in the drain, reconnecting the inflow hoses and plugging in the machine. It returned to the spin cycle and emptied without any more thumping or flooding.

"I don't know about you, but I'm not in the mood for the bedroom any more," Elena said. "Are you okay with that?"

"Yeah," Stefan said as he emptied the bucket and put it and the mop away. He had thrown the wet towels in the washer with his shoes. "That sure ruined the mood, but I'm glad you agreed in the first place." He grinned at her.

They walked down the hall where Elena picked up her purse and then they entered the study. With his arm around her shoulders, Stefan asked, "What are my chances, Elena? I mean with you?"

"Stefan, I'm so confused by my emotions, it's terrible," she admitted. She took the pictures from her purse and laid them on the ornate desk that was now used for the computer. She divided them into the two piles. "I don't want to hurt either one of you and yet I suppose I'm hurting you both, aren't I?"

"I suppose," Stefan said, rather than making a stronger statement. He picked up the stack of pictures that were for him and looked at them. "You know what I see?"

"What?"

"The look on your face in these tells me you really love us _both_. You're in the middle between us and you look so happy. Is that what you wish was the solution?"

Elena looked down at the floor. Should she admit it? Was it that obvious in the pictures? She felt a blush coming to her face.

"It is, isn't it?" Stefan persisted in a gentle voice.

Elena nodded slightly and looked up at him. Was he angry? No, he didn't seem to be. He looked sympathetic. Tears suddenly flooded her eyes.

With the pictures still in one hand, Stefan slipped his arms around her as he had done earlier. "You know I love you and you say you love me. But you love Damon in some way and we know he loves you. That puts you in an impossible position if you actually _want_ us both."

"I know! I can't _have_ you both, as much as I want it. That's what Katherine wanted and look how that turned out."

"Not at all like she expected. My brother and I are sometimes in agreement about certain things, including _not_ sharing the love of a special woman. And certainly not physically sharing her if we both love her. Not like in a couple of these pictures."

"I figured as much." After a moment of leaning against Stefan's chest, she looked up at him and asked, "Are you saying you'd share a woman with him if you _didn't_ love her?" Was that the case if they used some woman just for sex and feeding?

"Maybe, if I didn't even know her. We could both feed off someone."

"Mightn't that include sex?" she asked, and then she wished she hadn't asked it. Would Stefan be offended by the suggestion? She stared up into his dark eyes that were mostly green.

He looked away from her and then back before he answered. "In the past it might have, yes, sometimes. I shared women with Klaus that way because he insisted and because he had me back on human blood. I stopped, Elena. I haven't bitten anyone since that day I scared you on Wickery Bridge. I don't intend to bite anyone or compel some woman to have sex with me. I know it's not right. One time, just a while back, I did that, and when I realized she was a virgin, it was too late. I felt really guilty about that."

"Some guys would consider it a little triumph on their part," Elena pointed out with a little snort.

"It's never been high on my list to 'deflower' virgins. And to do it while they are compelled to want me is wrong. At least in my book."

"You're such a good guy, Stefan, despite being a vampire," Elena said, grinning and hugging him, pressing herself against him from chest to pelvis. She was often willing to overlook the fact that vampires did what they wanted, right or wrong. Perhaps she and Stefan could go to his room and ignore the fact that Damon would be home soon. "You try to do the right thing."

"Except when I don't," he reminded her. His arms tightened around her as his groin responded.

"There's always that, isn't there? What are the chances you'll 'slip' again and attack someone?"

"I don't know. I never know. All I can do is try to keep that stuff from taking over my will," Stefan admitted. "Is that a factor when it comes to choosing me over Damon?"

"Damon has his own negative points," Elena said. She ceased deliberately stimulating him, because she decided it wouldn't be fair to Damon. What? Was that a logical reason? Why did that thought enter her head? Hell, she'd never even slept with Damon. Maybe she should, because perhaps she would find she didn't like it. Oh sure. Like _that_ was going to happen!

"No one's perfect. I hope you aren't looking for the perfect man in either one of us," Stefan said, interrupting her confused thoughts as she moved her hips out of contact with him.

As she looked up at him, she saw that he looked a bit frustrated that she had him all excited again and was now backing off. She couldn't blame him.

"I'm not looking for perfection, Stefan. I'm looking for some happiness. Some compatibility. A little excitement. Love, of course. Things like that."

Elena stood on tiptoes and planted a kiss on his lips. He responded by embracing her tightly and with a deep kiss, which she found herself matching. Well, damn! To hell with Damon walking in on them. She felt such love for Stefan. She felt a renewed passionate urge to head for his bedroom.

And then she _again_ made the decision not to do it, even though she could feel his arousal pressing against her rather eagerly. She didn't mean to tease him like this. Hell, she was teasing herself. This is what she had done to Damon while in Denver. She could be such a slut! How much of this would Stefan put up with before he either pinned her down on the couch or stormed out of the room?

Right now he was being the old Stefan that she had adored before Klaus got his hands on him. He was impossibly patient and gentle, considering the situation. Being with Stefan could be all that she wanted or needed, if only … if only she didn't love Damon, too. Damn! Damn you, Damon, for being gorgeous, sexy, funny, challenging and for stealing my heart!

"Lucy, I'm home!" came Damon's voice as the front door opened. He used a Cuban accent like that of Ricky Ricardo in the TV show "I Love Lucy."

Elena and Stefan stepped apart before Damon walked into the study where they were.

"What's up?" he asked, ironically. "Hey, you brought the pictures," he said as he saw that Stefan had turned his back and was looking at a photograph. He walked over to the desk and picked up the pile that had a picture of him and Elena on the top. If he noticed Stefan's state of arousal, he made no snarky remark. Not immediately, anyway.

"Those are for you," Elena assured him as she moved to lean against the back of the couch.

Damon looked at two or three quickly and turned to leer at her. "Damn, you're hot, girl!

It's enough to _turn a guy on_." He rolled his eyes toward Stefan. "I can't believe you went along with posing like this, sweetie."

Looking into his blue eyes filled with humor and love, Elena's heart skipped a beat. She wanted his arms around her again, his mouth pressed to hers, his body pressed to hers like during that incident when she lusted after him in Denver. Oh, the frustration! Double damn!

"It was fun," she admitted with a small smile. She looked at Stefan, who turned his head and glanced at her with a serious expression. He now knew that under the fun had lurked the real problem and her unattainable desire.

What was she going to do? How could she make up her mind? How much time did she have before she had to make that decision? Before something happened to make the decision for her?

CHAPTER 4

A/N Half of this chapter has to do with stuff about the wedding. The other half deals with the wedding night. Read what interests you.

"The Dream Wedding"

That evening Elena took the pictures up to her bedroom. She had looked at them several times and had let her imagination play with them. What if her fantasy came true? What if she married both of the men she loved? As she and Bonnie had discussed and joked about, there would be problems to settle even about the wedding. Would it be a small, private affair attended by her, Stefan, Damon and Bonnie with a justice of the peace performing the ceremony? Or would it be a lavish wedding with half the town present?

Of course, since marrying two husbands wasn't exactly legal, she and her betrothed wouldn't even be able to get a license. But _if_ they were able to get one, the wedding would be attended by a crowd trying to see Mystic Falls' first polyandry wedding.

Old traditions said a bride didn't wear white if she was not a virgin. Modern society didn't really expect all brides to be virginal and they could wear white if they wanted to. After all, many couple lived together for months or years before marrying. She would definitely wear white, a lovely dress as she had dreamed of as a preteen girl and in her early teens. She and Bonnie and Caroline had looked at pictures in bridal magazines and imagined which dresses and veils they would wear when their big day came.

Caroline was a vampire now. Would she ever marry? Bonnie, a strong witch, a Bennett witch, might have trouble finding someone who would put up with the spells she cast and the incantations, the shelves of musty old grimoires and the jars of odd dried things. What guy would want circles or pentagrams drawn on his nice hardwood floors or candle wax drippings on the good carpet? Actually, come to think of it, Bonnie would _have_ to marry and to have at least one daughter to carry on her line of the Bennett witches.

If Elena married her two sterile guys, or even one of them, she would have no children. The dream of holding her baby right after it was born, of dressing the little one in any of the cute baby clothes available was not going to happen.

Unless she and her husbands adopted or she used artificial insemination. Who would be the better father, Damon or Stefan? A person couldn't tell in advance. How safe would the baby or child be with a vampire for an adoptive father? How patient would either man be with a screaming baby? It was scary how many babies were damaged for life or killed because of shaken-baby syndrome. Why was she thinking such morbid thoughts when getting married and having a baby didn't seem to be in her immediate future?

With a sigh, she put the pile of photographs on her bedside table. She headed for the bathroom to remove her makeup, brush her teeth and use the toilet. Then she crawled into bed and after a short while of more thinking, she drifted off to sleep.

Not surprisingly, when she dreamed, it was of Stefan and Damon and their wedding. There she was at Mystic Falls' biggest church, in a dressing room, finishing dressing with the help of Bonnie and Caroline. Her white dress of satin, silk and lace was beautiful, certainly the kind of dress young girls dreamed of having. The train spread out beautifully on the floor behind her.

"You are sooo beautiful," Caroline said wistfully, moving one of the curled strands of Elena's hair that hung down in front of her ears. Her hair had not been done to look like Katherine's. That would not have been appropriate, Elena knew. She didn't want her men thinking of Katherine when they should be thinking only of her, Elena.

Organ music from the sanctuary filtered through the walls of the room.

"It's time," Bonnie said from the door. She was the maid of honor. Caroline and two other girls were the bride's maids in pale lavender dresses.

"The church is full! Can you believe it?" Caroline said, both pleased and amazed. This was _an event._

"Of course," Elena said with confidence, despite the fact that she was a bit nervous. This was her big day, the culmination of planning, the realization of a wish. She looked at her image in the big mirror one more time. She looked great! When her guys got their first look at her, it would knock their socks off.

She walked out of the room into the hall where Elijah waited to walk her down the aisle and "give her away." He looked so incredibly handsome with his neatly combed dark hair and those piercing dark eyes. He was impeccably dress, as usual. The expression on his face was one of admiration and fondness. She loved him for doing this for her.

"You look absolutely smashing," he told her. In rare moments like this, she forgot that he was a vampire. He was a terrific man, a gentleman and her friend.

"Thank you, Elijah," she said, taking his arm, her bouquet in her other hand.

Preceded by the bride's maids and the maid of honor, Elena walked down the aisle on Elijah's arm, noting that the church really was packed. Mystic Falls was a small town and families knew families, teachers knew most of the children. The sheriff's office knew most of the citizens for various reasons. And there were the curious from out of town, including some media folks.

Ahead of Elena stood the minister and the two grooms. Both of her loves were dressed in identical tuxedoes and looking so very handsome. Damon's best man was Alaric Saltzman, his normal self again, clean shaven and looking ruggedly handsome. He was probably Damon's best friend, considering that Damon had few male friends.

Stefan had chosen young Jeremy to be his best man and the tall youth looked handsome and solemn. Stefan had asked Matt Donovan, but Matt, who had once loved Elena, and perhaps still did, had declined. He was in the crowd, however, on the bride's side of the aisle.

Both grooms were watching her approach. Stefan's expression was one of love and of admiration for her loveliness. Damon's look was also of love and appreciation for her beauty, but also included a twinkle in his eyes and a hint of a smirk that said he looked forward to more private activities.

It had been planned and agreed upon that she would stand between the two men, with Damon on her left and Stefan on her right. When Elijah brought her to stand before her men, she handed her flowers to Bonnie. She stepped forward as both Damon and Stefan held out a hand. There she was, finally, standing between the two grooms, Damon with a wide grin and Stefan with a gentle smile. There was love for her in the eyes of each of them. Her own heart swelled with joy.

As agreed upon, Damon and Elena repeated the simple vows first and she took him for her first husband. He was, after all, the senior brother. He slipped a narrow gold wedding band onto the ring finger of her left hand. (Her engagement ring sported two medium-sized diamonds, side by side) She put one on his finger. He lifted her veil and kissed her at the appropriate time.

Bonnie then stepped forward and lowered the veil. Elena then turned to Stefan and the vows were repeated. He slipped a narrow platinum wedding band on the ring finger of her left hand, right up against the gold band, and she put one on his ring finger. He grinned happily as he lifted her veil and kissed her. She felt so happy. She was now Mrs. Elena Gilbert-Salvatore.

The church was full of friends and townspeople, many curious to see how this unique wedding was carried out. No one came forth or spoke up about the custom against this kind of marriage. The minister had had no qualms about it. Everyone was happy as the new wife walked back down the aisle of the church between her two husbands, her arms around theirs.

There was a professional photographer there who not only took pictures during the ceremony, but also took the afterward pictures of the bride alone, the bride with her two husbands, the bride with her attendants, the grooms with their best men. Damon and Stefan each stood alone for a formal picture. What was missing were the parents of any of the trio.

They walked to the reception which was held in the park next to the church. Luckily the weather was decent. Everything went perfectly. Storm clouds which were forecasted for later held off very nicely.

Elena danced first with Damon. He grinned with happiness, his blue eyes full of love and humor. She enjoyed dancing with him because he was such a good dancer.

"I love you," she murmured to him.

"Of course you do, sweetie," he said, rolling his eyes. "I love you, too. I'm so happy."

Halfway through the dance, Stefan came to take Damon's place. He too looked happy and in love.

When Elena told him that she loved him dearly, he grinned and told her he adored her.

The tiered wedding cake had a bride and two grooms. Elena, Damon and Stefan cut the cake together and each guy fed her a small piece of the cake. Elena had warned them that they would be sorry if either one of them mashed cake in her face. Neither did. A girl named Annette, sitting in a wheelchair, caught the bride's bouquet when she threw it.

There were gifts, of course, but not a large amount. Between the Gilbert house and the Salvatore house, there was little the newlyweds needed.

The newlyweds didn't immediately go anywhere on a honeymoon. Instead, they eventually returned from the reception to the Salvatore house. They had one more drink each before going upstairs. The biggest bedroom with the king-sized bed was Damon's. This would be the scene of the wedding night. Prior to the wedding, the three of them had discussed what was to take place and any disagreements over the plan were settled.

By this time both men had removed the tuxedo coats and the cummerbunds. They both had rolled up the sleeves of their dress shirts and removed their ties. While Damon sat in a chair and sipped the bourbon he had brought up to the bedroom, Stefan started the process of undressing Elena. He helped her get out of the wedding dress, but he didn't remove her undergarments. He sat on the edge of the bed and removed his shoes and socks before standing up again before Elena. She then unbuttoned his shirt and undid his belt. She soon had him down to his underwear, which she peeled off him. He moved over to the bed and sat down on the edge.

She then turned to Damon. He had removed his shoes and socks, but was now just watching and sipping his drink.

He set his glass aside, stood up and grinned at her as she began to undress him. It was he who removed the rest of her garments. In a very short time, they were both nude. He grinned as he looked her over, head to toe. Although she had had quick glimpses of him naked, she now looked him over, too, but didn't dwell on any particular part.

The three of them were soon lying on the big bed, which Bonnie and Caroline had decorated with humorous things like tubes of lubricant, a couple of vibrators and condoms, which the men didn't need, being sterile and disease-free. Some fun foreplay took place which got all three of them turned on, but none of it involved any entry into Elena's private area. For Damon it was really special, finally free to kiss and touch her without her pulling away from him. One part of her was still off-limits, but soon it would be his.

By previous agreement and Elena's choice, it was Stefan who was first when they were ready for intercourse. This made him feel less like "second husband." She had slept with him many times when they were dating and she was comfortable with him, knowing what to expect. He certainly knew how to bring her to a terrific orgasm. She wondered if Damon's presence would inhibit Stefan, but it soon appeared that it didn't. In a few minutes, he accomplished what he set out to do, for himself as well, but he didn't bite her. It was a bit of a strain not to bite, but he managed. His time with Klaus had made him a biter like much earlier in his life.

Damon lay on his side (to Elena's left) on the bed beside them, watching and casually playing with himself, stimulating himself only up to a point. He wasn't about to go beyond that point, knowing his chance was coming up very soon. Elena, so close he could feel and smell her heat, knew he was eager, not only because he was aroused, but because this would be the first time that he would have access to her private parts, whatever he wanted.

Even while Stefan was doing his thing and Elena was responding, she was aware of Damon being right there. She had denied him her body right up to now. But tonight he would get his turn. Tonight she would find out if he was different from Stefan and in what ways. The truth was she felt a combination of both anticipation and nervousness about it.

After Stefan, she took time for a short rest before turning to Damon. There was a smirk on his face and anticipation in his eyes. Lust, really. She wondered if he was going to just "jump her bones." He was aroused enough by the look of him. Interestingly, she noted that he was the same size as Stefan, a fact which Stefan had told her once.

He leaned close, put a hand behind her neck and drew her into a kiss, a passionate one. She answered it with equal passion. To her surprise, Damon then rolled over from his side to flat on his back, and put his hands under his head. He grinned at her and wiggled his brows.

"I'm all yours, milady. Have your way with me. Do what you will."

"You never cease to amaze me, Damon. Now let me think. Where will I start," Elena said, grinning back at him. Ideas came to mind and she got busy. While Stefan watched from his side of the bed, she started by kissing Damon's chest and worked her way down his body, taking her time, making Damon groan and squirm. He kept his hands under his head. Until he couldn't any longer.

Suddenly Elena woke up from the dream. She listened to the night, wondering what had wakened her, but she heard nothing. She looked at her bedside clock and found that it was two o'clock. She was amazed to find that she could recall most of the dream. What an incredible dream! So wonderful! So real! She was sweating and aroused. Things had really been heating up between her and Damon and then … she had woken up. So, here she was in her own bed and really disappointed that the dream had ended.

Even at this hour, either one of the brothers would hurry to her house if she phoned, but she didn't. Instead she lay awake for some time thinking about the dream. It was probably an hour later that she drifted off to sleep again, wondering if she would dream again.

CHAPTER 5

A/N As you all have noticed, this story is as much about Damon and Stefan as the beginning was Elena and Bonnie. I should have stated that at the start, I guess, as a few of you thought it was just about the girls. In the beginning, I had only intended to write the first two chapters. For obvious reasons, this chapter does not include Bonnie.

"POLYANDRY"

Elena did have another dream related to her fantasy, the conversations she had had with Bonnie, the pictures they had taken and the dream she had just had. Just a fantasy and a dream, for here she was alone in her own bed.

She rolled to her left under the white silk sheet and her right arm came to rest on someone else. Hard muscles. She ran her hand slowly over the cool chest skin of the man next to her, fingers teasing the silky hairs around his left nipple. She inhaled his faint scent, and then exhaled with a sigh and a smile. Damon. Her husband Damon. One of her two husbands.

Before telling Bonnie her fantasy, she had looked up "polygamy" and found that it included "polyandry" which was when a woman had two husbands. For various reasons it was a rare occurrence in the world. One type was called "fraternal polyandry" where the husbands were brothers and they shared one wife. That was her. The one wife with the brother husbands. They were a rare occurrence. Rare, but rewarding.

Damon responded a bit to the touch, taking a breath. In deep vampire sleep, he didn't breathe or move. His heart didn't beat. He didn't really wake up at her touch, but Elena knew he was in lighter sleep now, the one vampires dreamed in. His eyes were moving under his lids. Was he dreaming of her? Was he reliving the union they had experienced? Probably, since his manhood was stirring under the sheet.

She moved her hand from Damon's chest to the sheets behind her, feeling, but no one else was there in the big bed. Stefan was probably out hunting rabbits or deer. He was doing his best not to partake of human blood.

She slowly rolled onto her back. Her right hand then went to her left shoulder, where there was a vaguely tender spot. She knew Damon had bitten her last night during sex. She thought about seeing his face change; it had scared her a bit. But tonight he hadn't bitten deeply, which had been a relief and she had realized he was deliberately not taking blood from a vein or artery. He had sunk his fangs into skin and muscle, which had bled enough to give him a satisfying swallow.

In addition, he had not used his lower teeth, so all she had were the two small fang marks. She had laid down the law, so to speak, that neither of her men were to put a bunch of teeth marks on her and Damon was complying.

Being fang-bitten during sex gave a combination of slight pain and an odd, sexual pleasure. Elena didn't know how to describe it, but she liked it. It was new for her because Stefan had never bitten her when they were intimate.

Intimacy with Damon had been a fresh experience, never mind the biting. He was different from Stefan in his attitude, his gentleness and his roughness. Damon knew ahead of time that if Elena didn't like something he did, she would tell him so. He had promised that he would abide by her wishes. So far, he had. She was now glad Stefan had showed her activities in the past that she had not known, having had somewhat limited sexual experience.

Moving back onto her side, she now turned her attention to Damon again. He opened his eyes, turned his head and grinned at her. He picked up her arm that once again lay across his chest and he kissed her palm. He then slowly kissed his way up her arm until he was a couple of inches from her mouth. She leaned closer and kissed him lightly.

"Good morning," she whispered.

"Very good morning, sweetie," he said, grinning as he turned over and started to move over her.

"Uh uh," she said, pushing him back. She flipped the top sheet off herself, but left him covered to his waist; then, nude herself, she scooted down to sit at the foot of the big bed.

"Where are you going?" he asked, reaching for her arm, stroking her skin.

"I need to go to the bathroom. And I'm going to take a shower."

"Okay. Me, too," he grinned, throwing off the sheet and starting to get up.

"Relax, Damon. Stay in bed." She flipped the sheet back over his hips.

Damon fell back with a disappointed sigh. "You're coming back? I think some morning delight is in order here." He wiggled his eyebrows.

"I suspect you're right," Elena grinned, rubbing his nearest foot, which was sticking out from under the sheet, sort of like in the photos. She felt the urge to tickle the bottom of his foot, but she knew that as a vampire, he wasn't ticklish.

The door to the hall opened and Stefan walked into the bedroom. He was messy with dirt and some dried tree leaves. He went toward Elena as she stood up from the foot of the bed. She reached out to hi arm and drew him closer, intending to give him a peck on his right cheek, which was not dirty. She knew his breath would smell of animal blood and she didn't want to taste it.

"Eww, Stefan! You smell like animal poop," she said, drawing back and making a face.

"The deer was reluctant to give me blood and we had a tussle," Stefan admitted, sniffing himself. He didn't kill the deer he fed on and he often caught the same deer more than once. In the woods adjacent to the Salvatore property there were two small herds of deer and at least one male with each. The dominant males tended to be more resistant to a vampire's mental soothing than the females. Stefan had obviously wrestled the deer to the ground.

"Get out of those clothes and take a shower, mister," Elena ordered as she continued to the bathroom. Stefan followed her into the big bathroom, even though he knew she didn't like anyone else in there when she used the toilet. She couldn't wait and she didn't order him to leave. She wanted him out of those smelly clothes and into the shower.

While she emptied her bladder, she watched him kick off his dirty cross trainers, peel off his tee shirt and jeans and finally rid himself of his boxer briefs. He had his back to her and she got a view as he bent over to pick up the dirty clothes to put in the hamper. She found herself lusting after his buff body, even though she had refused Damon's immediate attentions.

Stefan took a swig of mouthwash, swished it around in his mouth and spit it into the sink. When he went over to the shower stall and turned on the water, Elena decided she would join him and help him wash off the dirt and scent. Stefan stood outside the stall, one hand feeling for the water to get warm. Elena found it funny that vampires, who didn't really care what the temperature of the air was, loved hot showers and soaks in bathtubs. Damon actually had admitted that he loved bubble baths!

Elena tucked her long, dark hair up inside a shower cap so it wouldn't get wet. When Stefan stepped into the stall, she followed him. He turned to face her. Apparently the fact that she had half her head covered with a puffy, plastic thing didn't make any difference to him.

"This is nice," he said. "I'd give you a big hug, but I guess I better scrub some of this off me first, huh?"

"Yes, you better. But … I'll tell you what, _I'll _do it."

Stefan grinned. He was smelly from his hair to his feet and this wash-down was going to take a while. He knew he'd get turned on. With luck, his shared wife would, too.

Elena shampooed his hair. It stuck out all over his head until he ducked under the water again. Then using a wash cloth, her hands and a liquid bath soap, she scrubbed him down, the back and the front. Of course, they were both turned on by the time she got to his thighs.

Two of the walls of the stall were thick glass, including the door, while the other two walls were tiled. When he lifted her up and she put her legs around him, he leaned her against the tiles. They had several minutes of intimate fun and he didn't bite her.

She saw Damon come to the stall and look at them through the steamy glass. As Stefan set her down on her feet again, she beckoned to Damon, who opened the glass door and stepped inside. The space was suddenly crowded. Elena found herself between two wet bodies, two handsome men, bathed by the comfortably hot water. The men's hands and tongues moved over her, here and there. Her own hands and lips did a lot of roaming, too. Oh yes, it was great to have these two loving husbands.

Having already been with Stefan, she gave more attention to Damon and she let him have his way with her. She found herself once again up against the tiled wall, her legs wrapped around Damon this time. Ah yes, morning delight.

Finally, they turned off the water, stepped out and dried each other off. Or rather, Elena helped each dry off, and while she was tending to one, the other found wet spots on her body that needed attention. Her shower caps had mostly slipped off so that her hair was wet. Stefan took a dry towel and used it on her long, dark hair. Then he picked up the blow dryer and used that on her tresses.

The brothers were joking with each other and with Elena. They were determined to please her and make her happy, which in turn made them happy.

As for Elena, she felt incredibly happy and satisfied.

Elena woke up again and looked at her clock. The numbers glowed in the dark and showed her that it was now five o'clock. Once again, she remembered most of the dream. Unlike many dreams that seemed logical at the time, but totally illogical when remembered, this dream and the one she had had earlier seemed logical and real. She was quite sure she had actually had an orgasm in her sleep as she had dreamed of being with Stefan in the shower.

The weird part was that she could not remember having explicit sex with Damon. Despite the implications of parts of the dream, like she knew he had bitten her a second time, she had no memory of actual intercourse with him, of his entering her. Even in the shower stall "scene", when Damon had had her up against the wall, her memory gave her …. nothing! No memory at all of what it felt like. Most weird!

Why? Was it because she never had made it with him? That didn't seem like a good reason. After all, wide awake she could use her imagination to picture it, to almost feel it. That was what fantasies were for, wasn't it? But in some odd way, the dream had denied her. Somehow she felt cheated. Her own dreams had cheated her!

She had no intention of mentioning any part of the dream to the brothers. However, she thought about telling Bonnie. What would Bonnie think?

CHAPTER 6

"Nightmare"

A/N Ooops! Goofed again with my uploading of chapters. You'd think I would learn to do it right! Anyway, I have rewritten this chapter because I didn't like the way I wrote it before. Sort of ugly and gross! I hope this will read better. In this chapter, there is a business meeting at the Salvatore house with two guests. (My version of Mrs. Flowers is somewhat different from in the books.) Afterward, Elena goes out to dinner with them. A nightmare that night has her still married to the brothers, but things have turned nasty.

"New Tenant"

Because Damon phoned to remind Elena that the lawyer from the Salvatore Trust would be at the house that afternoon, she planned to be there for that meeting. Elena would be relieved of being the lease holder of the house. She looked forward to being free of that responsibility. So, after school she went home, changed into nicer clothes and drove over to the house.

The lawyer, Alexander Bluefield, arrived from Richmond accompanied by the widow Mrs. Theophilia Salvatore Flowers. She was a retired nurse and was also retired from managing a nursing home. At Damon's invitation, when he had thought he might leave Mystic Falls, she had come to check out the possibility of running the big house. The plan now was to have her sign the lease after Elena relinquished it. Until Zach's death, a Salvatore had always held the lease to the house.

Elena signed the papers releasing her from responsibility. For her, that a load off her shoulders, even though she could have relied on the Trust to take care of things. Now the on-site management of the place would fall to Mrs. Flowers. Until the woman moved in, Damon would run things as usual. In fact, he would probably continue to do so as the woman slowly "learned the ropes."

When it was the woman's turn to sign the papers, the brothers had to go out onto the front porch. They had to assume that she would invite them back into their own home.

In the living room, Mrs. Flowers said, "It seems so strange that they have to go outside."

"They can't enter a home if a human owns or rents it and is inside. Or even if the resident is not at home, but normally lives there. They have to be invited in the first time. After that, it's not a problem," Elena explained.

She remembered when she had un-daggered Elijah in the cellar and he had had to escape from the house because she had become the new lease holder. Poor Elijah had been in pain, confused and very uncoordinated. When she had invited him back in, he had been all right.

After signing where Mr. Bluefield indicated, Mrs. Flowers went to the front door and opened it. The two young men were looking at her expectantly. She thought it was weird that some invisible barrier kept them out, some barrier that she could not see or feel.

"Do come in, gentlemen," she said to them, smiling from the open doorway and stepping aside.

With relief, they walked back inside.

"Thank you," they each told her.

The group settled in the living room again and Mrs. Flowers explained that she had a nice apartment with nice neighbors, but "I have found I just can't be retired. And I'm so looking forward to being around young people for a change."

"I hope you won't be judgmental about what goes on around here," Damon said. "We talked before about things. Blood bags in the refrigerator. Arguments and fights. Ladies being here overnight, etc."

"I understand. I'll pretend this is more of a rooming house and the roomers can do what they want. Drink what they want. Whatever. Short of wrecking the place or burning it down."

It turned out that she and Mr. Bluefield didn't intend to go back to Richmond that night. Damon said there was plenty of room for each of them. He told her she could sleep in the downstairs bedroom that she had liked on her previous visit. She was pleased with this and she was also pleased that Elena helped her make the bed and find the towels in the bathroom. Soon after getting the room ready, the whole group went out to dinner.

Dinner at the restaurant ran late. The five people had a good time eating and chatting. Stefan was hungry and he ate more than usual. He had not gone on his evening hunt, of course, so he had a good appetite. And although he was usually a bit reserved, the conversation happened to hit on a subject he was interested in and he chatted away.

In addition, he was sitting next to Elena at the round table and he nudged her with his knee now and then. He felt her hand rest on his thigh a couple of times. When he looked at her, she had a little twinkle in her eyes.

Damon was pleased to see his brother in a social mood instead of being silent and brooding. For the most part, the brothers were able to put aside the problems that were surrounding them, at least for this one evening. Elena's presence helped. He suspected the two made contact under the table a couple of times. That was all right. He was across the table from her and he "accidentally" nudged her foot several times. She twinkled her eyes at him, too.

Damon thought that the photography session had also helped put Stefan into a better mood. That whole exercise had been very enjoyable, as far as Damon was concerned. He had loved being that close to a scantily-dressed Elena, holding her in his arms, her body against his. He had barely managed to keep from getting aroused. He kept wondering just what had prompted Elena to do all that, and with Bonnie's help, no less.

Elena had ridden with Stefan to the restaurant and then back to the Salvatore house, with a stop along the way at a drugstore. At the house, Stefan gave her a quick kiss before she got into her car.

"I hope you sleep well tonight," he said. "Take that medicine." She had told him something in the meal probably would bother her during the night. As she drove her own car home, she thought about how much she had enjoyed the evening with the group. Mrs. Flowers seemed like such a nice person, serious, but with a fun sense of humor. Elena had also enjoyed being out with both of the brothers. Damon had not been particularly snarky, while Stefan had been talkative for a change. And he had kissed her good night. More evenings like this would be so nice.

At home she talked to Jeremy for a short while. He was doing homework in his room. She was glad to have him back from Denver because the house had seemed so empty at night without him. He asked about the dinner and she told him it had been really nice – both the dinner and the company.

She stifled a burp and laughed. "I had radishes in my salad at dinner," she told her brother. "It's been _so_ long since I ate any."

"Elena! They give you bad dreams and major gas," Jeremy said with concern.

"I know. I'm going to regret eating them, but they were so good. Remember when we used to have them in Mom's garden? They were the first things to come up and we'd pull them out of the ground and eat them."

"Yeah. I remember. And it took a couple of weeks before you realized they were causing you a problem. Or Dad realized it and made you stop eating them. You're going to have nightmares and a stomach ache tonight. Major bloat."

"I guess so. I'm going to take something that might help. I bought some of that anti-gas medicine at the drugstore on the way home. Stefan wanted to know why I needed it, so I had to tell him. He said he was glad I wasn't spending the night with him."

Jeremy laughed at this, but he still thought his sister had made a serious mistake. He had been really young, but he still remembered how frightened he had been when he had heard his big sister screaming because of a terrible dream and a nasty stomachache.

Elena went to her own room. She went into the bathroom where she took a dose of the medication and then spent an hour on homework. Finally, she got ready for bed. She didn't fall asleep right away, but lay there in the dark thinking about dinner. And Stefan. And Damon.

"Nightmare"

When she fell asleep, she did dream. She had always been a dreamer and she often remembered some of what she dreamed. Some dreams she had had again and again over the years, like getting to school and not being able to find the homework papers. Experience had taught her that such a dream occurred when she had put off doing something she should have done.

Not surprisingly, her dream this night was related to the polyandry dream, but this one was different. Right from the beginning she felt stressed. She was driving her SUV along some street. Damon was beside her and Stefan was in the back seat behind Damon.

"Where are we going?" Damon asked in a quiet voice. "I don't know this street."

"Don't worry about it. I know where we're going," Elena said a bit impatiently.

"Yes, ma'am," Damon said in a subdued tone. He didn't look at her.

He didn't say more, but Elena glanced at him and saw the worried look on his face. It annoyed her. She had a nasty temper and she knew he didn't want to draw her ire. He shouldn't question her. She was THE WIFE and THE BOSS. He should just keep his mouth shut. His opinion didn't count half the time. Still, she reached out and gave his arm a reassuring squeeze.

"We'll be at Bonnie's soon," she told him and he gave a small nod.

As she drove along, the street curved to the right and she followed it. There were fewer and fewer houses. They should have come to Bonnie's house by now.

"I don't think this is the way to Bonnie's house," Stefan murmured from the back seat.

"Yes, it is," Elena said firmly. "I've gone to Bonnie's a million times. Trust me."

"I just think …"

"Did I ask for you opinion?" Elena snapped. The last thing she was going to admit to was being lost.

"No, ma'am."

"When I want your opinion, I'll ask for it."

"Yes, ma'am."

She looked at him in the rear-view mirror. He seemed hunched down in the seat. Most of the time, he was only good for one thing, as far as she was concerned. She loved him, as she loved Damon, but they could be so annoying, always wanting to put in their two cents' worth. Too often questioning her choices. Sometimes, she just had to smack them down.

Damon had been drinking too much. He'd always drunk too much bourbon and she had put a stop to it. He'd pitched a fit when she threw away his expensive liquor and now she suspected him of having some stashed away. He was going to regret it if she kissed him and she smelled or tasted liquor!

The pavement ended and the road became a dirt road. Elena continued to drive, bumping along and leaving a cloud of dust behind them. She was sure Bonnie's house was up ahead on the mountainside. It _had_ to be here somewhere, even though she didn't remember this dirt road. She felt some real concern, but she wasn't about to let the guys know. She was the one who was supposed to have everything under control. She didn't want them to doubt her.

The dirt road became narrower and narrower and finally stopped at a rushing creek. There was a bridge, but not wide enough for a car. How odd! On both sides of the road there were tall weeds, but on the right there was a wooden fence and beyond that an open pasture. Two horses grazed there, along with three zebras and several gazelles.

Neither of her husbands ventured to comment on where they were or what they would do next. She knew they wanted to question her, but she also knew they would keep quiet. It had taken her a while to whip them into shape as her minions, so to speak. They had been such independent, opinionated souls. Well, they weren't now. They knew their place. She had them trained rather well. She was the boss and they were obedient to whatever she told them to do. They could be such good husbands when they wanted to be. And sooo good in bed.

"All right, we'll have to ride the horses for a way," Elena declared and the three of them got out of the car, climbed over the fence and headed for the horses. The zebras and gazelles moved out of their way. The horses stood quietly and let them mount up, Elena on the white one and Damon and Stefan on the red chestnut one. Even thought the animals had no bridles, they went where Elena wanted to go and they galloped across the field and further up the mountain.

They went through an open gate and came to a stop at the edge of a vegetable garden.

"This is just like my mother's garden! Look over there. The radishes are up! Stefan, bring me a couple."

"Yes, ma'am," he said and he slipped off the chestnut horse. Damon, riding in front of him, just sat there. Stefan grabbed the leaves of two radish plants and pulled them up. The dirty red orbs of the vegetables hung below. He brushed off the dirt and broke off the leaves and the little root. He then brought the little vegetables to Elena.

She brushed off more dirt and then bit into one of them. It had a sharp taste that she liked and she ate both of them, while Stefan got back on the horse. She wasn't supposed to eat radishes, but it wouldn't hurt this once. She then led them around the garden and along a trail. Bonnie's house should be right up ahead.

She turned to look at her husbands, both so handsome, Damon in jeans and his usual black leather jacket, and Stefan in jeans and a tank top that showed his tattoo. They looked great on horseback. She loved them both and they adored her.

She looked ahead and frowned. Where had the trail gone?

"Where's the trail?" Damon asked from the horse behind her.

She turned to scowl at him and felt a surge of alarm.

"Where the hell is Stefan?" she demanded.

"He got off at the elevator. He had to pee and he was afraid you'd get angry if he wet his pants."

"Of course I'd get angry. All he had to do was go behind a tree to pee. And what elevator are you talking about?" She looked around and knew there was no building or elevator. She turned accusing eyes on him.

"The one at the pagoda," Damon said, cringing from her glare.

"Pagoda? Are we in Asia now? Make sense, Damon. Where is Stefan?"

"Honest, Elena. He got off at the pagoda and ran to the elevator."

"Show me," she demanded, turning her horse around and moving close beside his. She raised her hand to slap him and he cringed again. When he turned his mount around, she realized he was not on a horse any more. He had a red bicycle-built-for-two, a tandem. She looked at her horse, and it was a white bicycle. Oh, well. One mode of transportation was as good as another.

"I'll go get him," Damon said and he pedaled away quickly back down the trail.

"You wait for me, Damon!" she snapped and started pedaling. Something was wrong. Her bicycle had a flat tire and a bent wheel. "Damon, come back! You hear me? Come back!"

He kept going and disappeared among the trees.

There was a sound to her left and she looked to see a large black bear ambling toward her. Throwing down the bike, she started to run as fast as she could, screaming, "Damon! Stefan! Help me!"

They were both gone. Where did they go? To some mysterious pagoda with an elevator?

In a panic, she ran toward where Damon had said the pagoda was. What she saw was a small log cabin in a clearing in the woods.

"Help!" she screamed, hearing the bear shuffling closer behind her.

The cabin door opened and standing there was Mrs. Flowers. She had a broom in her hand and an apron tied around her waist. Behind her stood Damon and Stefan, looking nervous.

Elena felt relief. She could get into the cabin, they'd close the door and the bear would be left outside. As she came to the open door, she slammed into something. What? She felt it with her hands, an invisible barrier! Come on! She wasn't a vampire!

"Let me in!" she demanded.

"I'm sorry, dear. I'm not going to invite you in," the woman said. "You've been a really mean bitch to my boys. Figuratively speaking, you've castrated them. Your mother would be so ashamed of your behavior."

"Please let me in. The bear…" she begged, her fists hitting the invisible barrier. "Damon, pull me in!"

"I can't," Damon said and an ironic smile lifted the corner of his mouth.

Elena realized that she now felt really bloated, and her abdomen looked like she was pregnant! Her intestines were cramping. She was having a serious gas problem. The damned radishes! She knew better than to eat radishes.

"I need to use your bathroom. Please let me in!"

"The outhouse is around back, dear. Watch out for the spiders when you sit down," the woman said gaily and she closed the door.

Elena turned around to find the bear still moving toward her. She ran around the cabin and spotted the privy. Would she make it in time? Which was worse, facing the bear or sitting on spiders? She pulled open the door to the wooden outhouse and screamed.

A/N I seem to have enough for another chapter, so there will be one. It won't be any more of the nightmare, so for those of you who don't like this chapter, stay tuned. I appreciated the feedback. Thanks.


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 7

"Obsession"

A/N This chapter returns to normal activities, although Elena still obsesses for a while about the nightmare. This new chapter includes the start of the 1920's dance and the story ends there.

Thanks for the reviews, guys.

Elena woke up shaking. There had been spiders on the seat. Big hairy ones. Had she actually screamed out loud? Probably not or Jeremy would be knocking on her door. Wide awake now, she slipped out of bed and into the bathroom, locking the doors and sitting on the clean, spider-free toilet. She was there for a while, wishing she had not eaten the stupid radishes. She also had time to think about the dream. What a terrible person she had been! A nasty, controlling bitch. She had emotionally beaten Damon and Stefan until they were mere shadows of the men she loved. That was not what she wanted. She loved them just the way they were, faults and all.

It was a good thing it was all fantasy and dreams. Well, all except the photographs, but they were harmless. In reality, she couldn't marry both of the brothers and it was surely a good thing. It was possible she could get away with dating both Damon and Stefan, but even that was likely to cause jealously and anger problems. She definitely didn't want them to start giving in to her wishes and demands, although a little bit now and then would be nice. It was obviously not going to be an easy decision for her, if she decided to make one. If ever.

That morning at school, with mild dark circles under her eyes, a tired Elena told Bonnie about the dinner and the result of eating the radishes, but she didn't tell her about the wedding-night dreams. She did mention that she had had a nightmare with horses, bears and spiders. She swore she would never in her life eat radishes again.

"I've decided the very idea of marrying both Damon and Stefan was a stupid one and would never have worked. I think we would have argued and fought a lot," she told Bonnie, changing the subject. "Jealousy would have raised its ugly green head."

"I imagine so, but it was a fun idea, as a fantasy," Bonnie agreed. "And I have to admit I really, really enjoyed taking the pictures. For a little while there, the guys seemed like real humans instead of vampires. They were fun to be with."

"I know you don't like them because they're vampires," Elena said in a low voice, "But they really can be fun guys. And either way, they're gorgeous hunks," Elena said with a wide grin, trying to pretend that the nightmare still didn't bother her a lot. She told herself that she shouldn't concern herself with it. It was just a dream, a bad one. What worried her was that perhaps deep down there was a really controlling person inside of her.

"Yeah, I noticed," Bonnie agreed about the boys' looks. Elena's cheerful remark and grin didn't fool her. Something had really upset her friend. Had Stefan or Damon said something? Some unkind remark? Probably Damon. He wasn't careful about what he said, either because he didn't care or because he was deliberately trying to annoy someone. And boy, he could really annoy her, Bonnie.

As they were walking to class, Bonnie asked, "Are you going to the 1920's dance with Stefan?"

"He hasn't asked me. If he doesn't soon, I'm going to ask him. I need to go pick up my dress. I haven't even done that," Elena said with a sigh.

One thing Elena noticed during the day was that Alaric still had not returned to teaching his classes. As far as she knew, he was doing well, having recovered from the beating Stefan had given him and because he had started taking the herbs Bonnie had given him. She would have to ask Damon if he had talked to his friend. It wasn't like Ric to avoid her and Jeremy.

When Stefan didn't ask her to the dance, she phoned him and asked if he would be her date. He said he would like that. This lifted her spirits a bit. Just thinking about him, and Damon, made her remember parts of the nightmare and the wary expressions on their faces in the dream. Could she blame it all on the radishes? That would be the best thing to do, if she could convince herself.

She still hadn't gone to the costume store to pick out a dress. It seemed like such a chore instead of something she could get excited about, like Caroline. Parties and dances were exciting to Caroline and that hadn't changed when she had become a vampire. Often, Elena just forgot that her friend actually was one.

At the Salvatore house Damon overheard Stefan's half of the conversation with Elena and he watched his brother smile as the call ended. A spark of jealousy touched his heart. He spoke up, and with a slightly snarky tone, he told his brother not to forget to get her a corsage.

Stefan looked at Damon, thought about making some comment, but decided to just nod. In the ongoing contest between them, Stefan had won this round without even trying. He was quite pleased that Elena had called him, because he really hadn't felt any enthusiasm for going to the dance. Now he did. The idea that she had asked Damon first and he had declined crossed his mind, but he pushed it aside as unlikely. Damon wasn't a student.

He headed out to get a suit that was right for the era, although there were some 1920's clothes in trunks up in the attic. He didn't want to bother looking and then needing to have the suit dry cleaned.

As it turned out, he ran into Elena at the store. She had just finished renting the dress and accessories she intended to wear. Although she put on a smile, Stefan sensed that she was upset. Even when he had spoken to her at lunch at school, she had seemed ill at ease talking to him. Still, she had asked him to the dance. She must not be mad at him.

He waited for her outside the store, thinking that perhaps they could sit on a bench in the town square and talk.

She was surprised to see him when she walked out.

"Hi. Are you waiting for me?" she asked with a smile.

He tried to interpret her expression and tone, but he couldn't.

"Can we go over there and talk? Just for a couple of minutes?" he asked and she nodded, a questioning look on her face now.

When they were seated, he felt awkward. It wasn't his business to pry into her concerns, unless it involved him. Had she been tense around him at school just because she was trying to decide about asking him to the dance?

"I don't know where to start," he managed to say. "I'm glad you asked me to the dance, but I keep feeling that you're mad at me or something else is wrong."

"Why would you think that, Stefan?" she asked with a slightly surprised look on her face.

"I don't know. You acted strange at lunch. Like I'd done something wrong."

"You didn't do anything," Elena said. How could she tell him that she was still upset about the nightmare? He didn't know anything about the great imagined wedding, the fun wedding night or the awful nightmare. Should she tell him anything? If so, how much and in what way?

"Something is really bothering you. If it's the problems with Klaus or Ric, I understand, but if it's something to do with me, I don't understand," Stefan said gently. He wanted to slip his arm around her, but he wasn't sure of her mood.

Her hand was lying on her thigh and he moved his hand to hers. He interlaced his fingers with hers and raised her hand, planting an old-fashioned kiss on it.

"If I did or said something that upset you, I apologize," he continued, looking into her solemn dark eyes.

"Stefan, you _didn't _do anything. Really," Elena said, liking that he was stroking her hand with his thumb. "Look, you remember I told you the radishes in my salad were going to give me trouble?"

"Yeah."

"Well, they did. I had an awful stomach ache and I had a nasty nightmare. I was with you and Damon in the dream and I was just horrible to both of you. A waspish bitch."

"It was a nightmare, Elena. You aren't really like that. And what do you mean you were with Damon _and_ me? Like in the pictures?"

Elena hesitated to answer, which was a mistake. "I … well…"

"Were you in _bed _with us? Both of us? Now, that _is _a fantasy dream." He was just guessing, but he saw her reaction and knew he was right.

"Of _course_, it was! I know that!" Elena said firmly, but with embarrassment.

"You couldn't have both of us in bed for real, not at the same time. I wouldn't want Damon there making snarky remarks about us if we were getting it on. And I certainly wouldn't want to see him making it with you." For a brief moment Stefan could picture _that_ scene. He pushed it from is mind.

"Of course not, Stefan. It was the _radishes_! The whole scene was awful. It was like I was a movie director and you each had to do what I said, when I said. I wouldn't take any of your suggestions or let either of you make any decisions! I've been feeling horribly guilty." There, she had admitted it!

"I think there are movie directors like that. But, honey, it was a dream. A nightmare. If that's what's bothering you, let it go. There's nothing for you to feel guilty about."

He wondered just what she had made them do or not do. Looking at her carefully, he thought for a moment that she was going to cry, but she didn't.

He raised her hand and kissed it again.

Bonnie appeared before them, her phone camera aimed at them.

"Got it. That's sweet," she said.

"I hope you don't still have those pictures on your phone," Stefan said.

"No, I don't," Bonnie assured him. "Well, I have to go get my dress. I guess we are all shopping late." Luckily there were two stores in town that sold and rented costumes and clothing for period events. The town of Mystic Falls would throw an event at the drop of a hat, as they say.

"See you tomorrow," Bonnie said as she left.

Stefan looked at Elena and thought she looked less tense. Her grip on his hand felt less tight. She sighed.

"I guess I better get home, too," she said. "I'm glad you let me talk about this. I felt so stressed over a stupid nightmare."

"I'm always willing to listen," he said. He leaned close and gave her a kiss on the cheek. He hoped she would turn her face to him for a better kiss, but she didn't. He watched her gather up the shopping bags and stand up. He stood, too.

"Thank you," she whispered. This time, she did lean close and gave him a quick kiss on the lips. She moved away before he could really lock lips with her. "I'll see you tomorrow, Stefan," she said, and she walked off to where her car was parked.

Stefan collected the suit he planned to wear and headed for his car. His thoughts went to her nightmare and he wished he knew just what had taken place in it. Maybe it was better that he didn't know.

That night Elena took a pill she had been prescribed from when Jenna had died. It helped her sleep and she had no dreams, good or bad, that she remembered in the morning. She was in a better mood as she had breakfast with Jeremy.

"You're recovered," he observed.

"Finally," she said, nodding.

At school things went better and she was more enthusiastic about the dance to take place that evening. Her friends noticed that she was in a better mood and they were pleased for her.

She told Bonnie that she had told Stefan about the nightmare and a weight of sorts had been lifted off her shoulders.

Stefan looked forward to the dance which, two days before, he had had no interest in. In the early evening he went to the kitchen to make himself a sandwich. Mrs. Flowers was there putting together a salad for herself. He had been surprised to find that she had moved in so quickly. He wondered what it would be like to have her in the house all the time. He and Damon would have to be a little careful about what they said or did. Like, he probably wouldn't run around in his underwear. Or yell curses at Damon if he was angry at him. They probably shouldn't get into fights that led to bloodshed on the carpets.

He felt a bit shy around the woman, even though he had chatted with her when the group had gone out to dinner. She now had a few things to say and he mostly just listened. He said nothing about his evening plans. She didn't say anything about the fact that he ate his sandwich and drank a Coke while leaning back against the kitchen counter rather than sitting at the table.

A little later, after he had dressed for the dance, he went to the kitchen to get the white rose corsage he had bought for Elena. Mrs. Flowers was there fixing herself a cup of tea. She was surprised to see him dressed as he was in the navy suit and tie in a somewhat old-fashion style.

"My, don't you look nice, Stefan. A date?"

"The 1920's dance at the high school. I'm on my way to pick up Elena," he said as he opened the door to the refrigerator and removed the one-rose corsage he had placed there.

"May I straighten your tie a little?" she asked.

"Yes, ma'am," Stefan said, and he stood there like a good boy while she did this.

"I can't believe I'm standing here fixing the tie of a vampire," she said, and she looked up into his dark green eyes.

"Most of the time I act and feel very human," Stefan said with a smile. "Unless I'm angry or weirded out, just treat me like I'm human."

"All right. There you are. You go and have fun, dear."

Elena waited for her date to arrive. She was dressed and ready. Standing near the front door, she looked at herself in the mirror hanging over the small table there. She thought she looked good. No dark shadows under her eyes and no haunted look. She lowered her gaze to the table. There sat a framed 8" by 10" photo of her between the two brothers. Fully clothed, they smiled at the camera. It was one of the first in the series of pictures Bonnie had taken.

There was a knock on the door. She opened it and admired how handsome Stefan looked. It made her heart skip a beat.

"You look very dapper," she said, looking him over and smiling.

"You look very beautiful," he said with a little grin.

She was so pretty in her 1920's hair style and dress. Using the straight pin that came with the corsage, he pinned it to the upper left side of her dress. He was sure her smile reflected the love he felt for her. Unfortunately, she also loved his brother. Well, forget that for now, he told himself. Now he had the chance to dance with her and hold her close, and Damon didn't. There was the possibility that after the dance she would invite him into her bed. He had hopes.

He saw the photo on the table and smiled a little. Okay, Damon was in it, but on the other hand, it was an excellent picture of all three of them. I'll make an enlargement and frame it, too, he told himself.

When they walked to his car, he held open the door to the Porsche and she slid in, her short dress riding up to show most of her long, slender legs. She looked up at him with a smile, catching him ogling her thighs. Her smile widened. He then went around to the driver's side and got in.

"This is nice," she said as he drove toward the school where the dance was being held. "We need a night of just plain fun. Good times. We deserve it."

"Yes, we do," Stefan said. He reached out with his right hand and took hold of her left one. She squeezed his fingers.

Both of them knew that other dances at the school had led to disasters for them, but they pushed that idea to the back of their minds. This dance would be different.

When they got to the crowded gymnasium, all nicely decorated, 1920's music was playing. A fast number quickly changed to a slow one. Almost shyly, Elena came into his arms, laying her head against his right shoulder, her breasts pressed against his muscled chest, as they swayed to the music. They noticed and commented on some of those dancing near them: Bonnie with the young fellow Jamie, Caroline, Matt, Tyler, even Jeremy. Surrounded by soft music and friends, and in each others arms, Elena and Stefan felt contentment.

A/N As we all know, the dance didn't go well for Stefan, Elena and their friends due to the actions of Esther and Alter Alaric. This is the end of the Fantasy and Photos story. I hope you all think it's a nicer ending than where I ended it before. Comments?


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